The Werewolf Cloaked In Red
by JustYourAverageFan
Summary: After being forced into the life of a summoner due to a double murder, Ecarlate struggles to fit in with the rest of the Silver years and adjust to the magic school shes been stuck in. But most importantly, Ecarlate often wonders if she'll ever be able to meet the werewolf that saved her once again, even if it means risking everything. Warwick... Just who are you?
1. Chapter 1

"Red"

Such an innocent word.

Flashy and flamboyant, yet it laughed and gossiped with passion and desire. The color that adorned the winged cupid who freely gave away arrows of love; sharp, cutting edges of wanting that was so bittersweet and endearing that it felt almost dangerous. That it could almost cut you if you indulged in more than your fair share.

"Red"

It simply demanded your attention and grabbed your eyes with its vivid spectrum and clawed at you to not look away. Bulls were very slaves to its wild color and driven to madness by its enticing, ever seductive allure.

Yes, red. The color of violent emotions that at whim, could turn gentle and enslave you in a sweet stupor with the very dedication that a alcoholic would whisper words of doting onto a bottle of Merlot.

If not that metaphor, then the sensation of a curvaceous cherry in your mouth. Firm and almost unyielding, yet the minute your molar sliced through that sweet skin a sudden burst of flavor lay wild and slandering sweet pearls of ecstasy as it bleed in your mouth and the very harsh walls turned to mush and slowly fell away.

All these notions lay about with willy red.

Yet none of these innocent ideals teased her head, as she stared blankly down at the corpses of whatever was left of her parents and their killers, merging to form a warm river of crimson that spooled all over this barren house. Ecarlate wanted to scream. It was building inside of her like a kettle that was forcibly clamped shut, and she knew that if she did start screaming, she wouldn't stop until it ravaged her vocal chords.

" Why. " How could a single word hold so much despair?

Yet there she lay, stricken dumb with disbelief that she didn't even fight against the arms that scooped her up and began to carry her away from what was left of her home.

He was a puzzling stranger, with his face hidden underneath a hood of that of the color of crushed pomegranate seeds. He had what appeared to be a cylinder like vial impaled into his back, and his hands- no paws- were sheathed inside metal claws that looked sharp enough to cut a falling leaf unfortunate enough to be blown into his path.

A sane person should be asking questions, they should be demanding answers, yet all she think about was how comforting it was to be near him. Even if she couldn't properly see him. But that wasn't the purpose was it? No, she needed him so she could distract herself from her parents empty eyes. The broken doll like bodies seized her far more harshly than the frigid air threatening to freeze her to death. If she stopped thinking about the stranger, she'd be forced back into this broken, shattered, remains of her world. She wanted to wallow in whatever bits of sanity she had left and forget what had happened in a matter of minutes. Yet the howling wind mercilessly forced her back to reality with each attempt to seclude herself.

Freezing, Ecarlate tilted her head against her benefactor and buried herself further into his warm chest in a feeble defense against the stinging slap of snowflakes. She felt him stiffen, but continued to run at that abnormal pace through the woods, a speed that no human should be allowed to surpass.

The rest of the journey carried out in silence, and she eventually fell to sleep in his arms.

The stranger glanced down and readjusted his grip and kept running.

After many hours, he finally arrived at a massive, almost Gothic like building that stretched far across the horizon. Without pausing, the stranger made a sudden super human leap, easily bypassing the bridges, carefully making sure his passenger was still in place, and landed roughly near the entrance.

A purple cloaked summoner melted from the shadows and took off his hood. He was a robust, 30 ish year old man with sharp eyes and a stubble on his chin. He had a rough face, and that face was scowling as he noticed the person in the strangers arms who was only just beginning to stir.

" By all the deities of Runeterra, just WHAT were you THINKING bringing her here? " he raved, wringing his hands. " You do realize that this is a complete breach of protocol? You were supposed to put down the stragglers and return at once to the institute when your mission is finished. Bringing a civilian in the aftermath of events is completely unacceptable!"

" She has lost both of her parents Avery. ", the stranger replied. Ecarlate found his voice both deep and primal, with an almost hidden growl underlying there that made her shiver. " They are both unfortunate citizens caught in the crossfire and she has no one left now. " The stranger cocked his head. " I can't just leave her there in the middle of winter with no shelter."

Avery sagged and rubbed his eyes. He looked as if he was contemplating a shot or two of rum and yelled a few choice words toward no one in particular.

The stranger just sat there with a bemused sort of air and waited for the bald summoner to finish his tantrum. Eventually, after much yelling and some crude words about yordels and a promise regarding a needlessly long stick, Avery furiously whipped his index finger at the stranger and said " FINE. We'll take her in and train her to be one of our own. But this incident had better not happen AGAIN." Avery said.

" I swear, if this keeps happening, this institute is going to turn into a orphanage by the Gods of Runeterra. " The mage scowled.

" Much obliged Avery. " The cloaked stranger gently handed her over to the impatient summoner and paused as her hand suddenly shot forward and clamped onto the tip of the strangers claw tip.

She opened her eyes, a exquisite shade of deep red, wide and unwavering, and asked " Who are you? "

The stranger slowly raised his claws and began to remove his hood. Ecarlate almost gasped as she saw a wolfish face appear from the maw of the darkness.

He slowly grinned, revealing a wide assortment of sharp teeth that looked dangerous enough to crush a grown mans arm in a casual bite.

He ran a single finger up her face, and she couldn't help but shiver.

The stranger leaned forward hot breath warming the nape of her neck, and whispered into her ears.

" To the public, I am known as Warwick " he mused. " And to others... " he paused and gave a toothy grin " I am the big bad wolf "

He leaned back and undid the red cowl he was wearing and handed it to Ecarlate with a pat in her hands.

" Also... saying `Sorry for your loss` is the sort of thing that shitty, idiotic people would say, so i'm not going to say that. " He added.

Warwick straightened himself up and folded his arms. " I know starting a new life isn't easy, but you'll have to force yourself to adapt and claw for your future. After all, life is never easy for anyone and its the challenges that makes life worth living. "

The werewolf expression suddenly soured like he had bitten into a lemon.

" Unless you are one of those pansy ass Piltoverians who spend their free time drinking tea with their pinkie fingers and nibbling biscuits... Gods how I hate those stuck up little prats. " He muttered in annoyance. "

I would most certainly like to stick their top hats up their conceited little butt holes as soon as I get the chance and see how far etiquette can get you with a 12 inch cane stuck up their pampered buttum. " Warwick snorted.

Ecarlate couldn't help it.

She started to laugh as the wolfs derogatory, yet witty humor shaved away some of the sadness in her and she began to smile.

Noticing her change in expression, the Werewolf flashed another small toothy smile and to her surprised, patted her head gently.

" Im sure you'll do fine here, I can just sense your potential and ... etchetra whatever positive thing someone should say to a person " Warwick snorted. " Ive never been very good at words. "

" Well.. I think you are very go- " Ecarlate started to say until Avery coughed, announcing his presence.

" Ahem" Avery tapped his foot " Now that the sugar and powder party is over, we need to get back on schedule. You still have work that you need to finish in particular Warwick." Ecarlate thought for a second, she saw the wolfs eyes darken at the mention of `work`.

Avery held out his hand, and Ecarlate hesitated, not wanting to leave the wolfs side.

" Go on, it'll be fine. " Warwick assured her with a gentle nuzzling of his nose.

Taking the summoners hand, she glanced back at Warwick again one last time and finally, followed the wizened summoner into the Institute of war.

I ... Hope I get to see him again.


	2. Chapter 2

1 year later...

A young girl sat hunched over a pair of scrolls, her face gently illuminated by the shining sun pouring through the open window, her forehead furrowed in concentration. After 5 intense minutes of doing absolutely nothing but posing her pen over a blank scroll, she set her pen aside and let out a frustrated sigh.

" Claaaaaaiiiirreeee, guess what! " a cheerful voice shattered the dull haze, and she turned around to find her friend Vivian slamming the door behind her and squealing all the while as she threw her drawers about before crashing onto Eclarte's bed.

" I've said it before and i'll say it again, stop tossing your undergarments everywhere, " Ecarlate said crossley. " Im getting rather tired of picking up your clothes after you, and if I see one more of your victorian panthies on my bed, im going to Ignite your entire wardrobe."

" Oh don't be such a grump Claire and who cares about my wayward knickers anyway? " Vive ignored Claire's scandalous look. " Anyway, like I was saying. You will never BELIEVE who I just asked to the Summoners ball today! " She squealed.

" Please tell me you picked someone that isn't just trying to get into your robes this year. " Claire said drily, brushing off a frilly bra from her shoulder. " If memory serves, the last date you picked was not only insufferable, but it was pretty clear from square one, that he wanted nothing more but to sex you at the end. " If the ( Not so secret ) dry humping didn't make THAT obvious enough.

Vive wrinkled her nose " Oh yuck, don't bring that slimeball up again ever, please. I am still trying to spell that memory out of my head. "

" Speaking of which, I still think turning him into a toad and dangling him over the dragon pit was a tad overboard. "

" Hah, I wasn't ACTUALLY going to feed him to the dragon, what type of second rate summoner do you take me for? "

" Well, you DID let the dragon take a few snaps at him, and it almost ate his legs. "

" Posh! I had everything under control! " Vive sniffed. " Besides, im not cruel enough to feed a cretin like him to the dragon, it'd give the poor thing indigestion. "

" Well enough about him, " Claire grinned. She could always count on good ol Vive to break the dreariness of the day, whatever she liked it or not. " So whos the lucky man that was fortunate enough to win this fine ladies hand? "

" Well since someone finally decided to show some interest , that certain lucky man is , " Vive leaned forward, and glanced as if in some sort of conspiracy, " No one else but.. " Pause.

Claire smiled indulgently and motioned her to go on.

" But... "

Smile Smile.

" Buuuuuuuuut... "

Claire's face began to twitch.

" It's Urgot. " Vive said seriously.

Blink, Blink.

" Okay okay, I was kidding! I don't fancy any of the champions at all this year, it's someone that we know already. " She chuckled. " You remember Jaques? The Silver year summoner that we always see in the dining hall when we grab coffee? "

Claire recalled the shy, blonde boy who always sat in the corner with his nose stuck in a book. The nervous kid seemed to be scared of everyone and once, when Claire attempted to talk to him, he acted like she tased him and spilled his lavender tea in a panic which left not only both of them soaked, but drew everyone's attention as well. He then promptly burst into tears and ran away, and Claire was left in the Cafe by herself, gray robes dripping with tea, and a vow to avoid all lavender products for the rest of her life.

" You didn't. " Claire said deadpanned.

If anything that experience taught her, was that Jacques wouldn't have the backbone to accept an invite from someone like Vive.

" But I did! " Vive sniffed. " You should've seen the happiness on his face, the lucky dog couldn't even talk from his tears of joy. "

Claire had the sudden vivid image of a venus flytrap drawing in its victim seconds before the fatal " Snap ". She was only 99 % certain that it was terror, not tears of joy that her friend saw.

" Well congratulations on getting your date, " Claire said. Considering Vives voracious personality and confident nature, it was certainly impossible for her best friend not to get a date. " Im sure you two will hit it right at the dance. "

Vive frowned. " Just you two? What do you mean? Aren't you coming this year?

Claire made a face. " Ugh, fortunately no. I only went last year to see what it was like, and im not sure im comfortable going again this year. "

" That's only because you didn't bring anyone to dance with you that time! Of course you were going to sit out by yourself then " Vive said, exasperated.

" But still... "

" Did you know that a certain someone is going to be there as well? " Vive suddenly said. Claire wrinkled her forehead in confusion. " Who? "

" Well he's big, he has the manners of a gentlemen occasionally, and he's really, REALLY, hairy. " She emphasized the " hairy " with her eyebrows.

Claire sucked in her cheeks in surprise. " You don't mean? "

" Yes, it's your loverboy Warwick you ninny." Vive swatted her shoulder. " Now do you reconsider? "

" He's not my lover boy " Claire muttered. " And that still doesn't mean im going. " She had mixed feelings about Warwick. After leaving her on the Institute Of War's doormat, she practically hadn't seen hide or hair of him ever since.

After getting over her shock and learning to harness the forces of magic with the rest of the initiates, she was angry later that he just took her, dumped her into someone else's hands like some stray, and to add salt to injury, pretended like she was someone else's problem now and severed all contact with her. Afterwards, she realized she was being disagreeable.

He had rescued her even though he didn't need to, and why would he need to do anything more than that? She was a stranger, and to ask more from him was simply childish. Still, she still wished that he would at least visit her from time to time to check on her progress. While their time was short, and mostly silent until the end, she missed his humor and company.

God, she wanted to touch his ears the most, they looked so long and fluffy; but she kept that to herself. Vive would tease her to no end if she knew.

" Well if you change your mind, the offer still stands. " Her friend flopped to the other side of the bed. " Crimminey, I still have to write that paper about the great " Rune Exchange, " She groaned " And we have Prose Spelling in 15 minutes. "

" Shiitake mushrooms, I still haven't spelled out a new practice spell to show for the class. " Claire smacked her forehead with the palm of her hand.

" Well make something up quick, or Dr. Caster will have your head on a pike before the end of 7th period. " Vive said grimly.

" Thanks for the vote of confidence. "

" All part of my job, you're welcome. "

AUTHORS NOTE:

Sorry for the long chapter delay! Was on a family trip, but now im finally back with STABLE WIFI Thank the Gods.

Questions concerning my last story, I felt it was poorly written and I feel embarrassed just looking back at all the spelling mistakes and bad plot hahaha...

So thats why I haven't updated it at all, not because I've forgotten any of you. ( The inbox from my messages proved THAT in a hurry ) .

Thanks for your patience, and I hope this one is a long writing novel!

\- K


	3. Chapter 3

" You are late. " Said Dr. Caster in a disapproving voice.

The professor was a thirty five ish gray haired man with a sharp jawline, a no-nonsense attitude, and sharp, piercing blue eyes. Clad in dark mauve robes that draped over his thin form, he simply radiated authority.

In this case, annoyance.

Vive gave him a big smile. Claire had the decency to at least look apologetic as they took their seats near the windows.

" Right then, as I was saying. " Dr. Caster Surveyed the rest of the Silver year class mixed with some Bronze and Gold years. " Today, you are going to show me and your classmates just how capable you are at the art of innovation. "

He sat down at his desk and folded his hands. " As you know, Magic is a wild, chaotic force that can raise mountains, obliterate empires, and even invoke maelstroms of the magnitudes that can swallow the very land we walk upon. However, if properly controlled, it can save lives, smite foes, forge mighty monuments, and generally, make our lives much easier. "

He said with a grim smile. " Magic permeates the very air we breath, and those who have the talent to communicate with it, can call upon the arcane to aid them and achieve what otherwise might be impossible on their own. Its power is only limited by your imagination and your aptitude to wield it."

Dr. Caster picked up his staff and stood up. From what rumors she heard, the main body of the staff was supposedly carved from the body of a ash tree, and soaked in moonlight for three nights and lastly garnished with pure red crystals carved from the deep crevices of Runeterra. The head of it was endowed with a wickedly sharp blade forged from iron, similar structure to that of a short handed spear. Using that very point, he tapped the chalk board thrice and said " Thus, it would do you all well to remember the three P's when utilizing it. Power, Posture, and most importantly, Purpose. " He circled the words.

" Without Power, you cannot fuel your spells and give the energy necessary the magic demands in return. Without the correct Posture, you are not directing your power where it is needed, and you may very well end combusting yourself which, I must add, is both very messy, and very painful."

He gave a short pause. " And of course, Purpose. " He underlined it. " You need to have a reason, a incentive to give to the magic as well as yourself. Without purpose, you're no more different that a child holding a lit match in the midst of a candle shop. And if you have no control, rather a child holding a lit match in the middle of a bonfire. "

He clapped his hands and the desks and a scoreboard popped up and hovered in the middle of the air. " For homework last week, you were given a project that will show me and your peers your ingenuity and proficiency in these three fields. The assignment was to create a new Spell and you will be graded upon your creativity and control of your incantation. Bonus points will be added for the spells practicality as well as flamboyancy. " No surprise there since their teacher also had a eye for beauty.

He snapped his fingers and the desks ( Along with their surprised occupants ) flew and settled into a semi circle to leave a broad, empty space in the middle.

" Now then, " Dr. Caster swept his hands out grandly to the class. " Who will take the honor of going first? "

" I will. " A Gold year stood up and walked daintily to the front of the class.

" Of course it's Heather Periwinkle who volunteers first. " Vive muttered crossly.

She and Heather had a mutual dislike for each other that warred on, even now. The whole thing started during Claire's first year at the institute as a Gray year at the cafeteria, and in a sense, it was pretty much her fault too actually that the two girls hated each other so. It was also the birth of her friendship with Vive and it all happened something like this.

At the institute, the class factions often sat together during free periods and luncheon hours, so it was pretty much inevitable that the two would eventually meet, and when they did, it was like pitting two male roosters together. Claire was just stuck in the crossfire.

She was sitting at the corner of the table nibbling a scone and struggling to memorize her runes when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She glanced up and saw a girl with hair the color of a blue raspberry scowling at her and another girl on her right.

" Hey buddy, this spots taken. " The blue haired girl said. " So why don't you go and take a hike somewhere else? "

Claire looked at them like they just sprouted another head. " But I was here first thing in the morning, and no one said anything about seating arrangements. "

" You obviously don't know your place here. " The blue haired girl wrinkled her lips in distaste. " Some things are left unspoken but- " The other girl slammed her palm onto the wooden table. " - enforced " Smiling as the other girl emphasized her point.

Ecarlate wasn't quite sure what to do at this point. If she left, it would lower whatever sad standing she had in the institute and reinforce this girl's ego; if she stayed, she was pretty much asking for a fight and she wasn't in the mood to assert her dominance either.

Before she could make a decision, the girl sitting on her left said " If that's so, why don't you and dimwitted sidekick go clean out the outhouses then? "

They swiveled.

" And why is that? " The blue haired girl narrowed her eyes.

" Because you're full of shit. " the other girl snorted.

" Why you mouthy little brat. " The blue haired girl's sidekick is stepped forward. " Do you have any idea who you're talking to?

" Now now, step down Constance. You can't blame these types of people for not knowing our lineage. " The blue haired girl said. She turned to them. " I am Heather Periwinkle of the Blue Malkins. A royal family of the most respectable origins. " She then gestured at her friend Constance. " And this, is Constance Ocelot. A member of the Henna family tree which is also held in high regard. " She paused. " Although, I can't seem to say the same about you two. " Heather gave them a condescending smile. Pleased with the jab she had endowed.

" Really? You two should be called Green Cactus. " The other girl appeared unimpressed. " Because it looks like everyone in your family tree is a prick. "

Claire ooo'ed and clasped her mouth shut quickly.

" Why you bloody knave.. " Heather said furiously.

" Excuse me ladies, is something of the matter here? " A faction procter stood looming over them.

" Oh nothing at all, just a little quibble we'll be on our way. " Heather replied sweetly.

The minute the procter turned around she swiveled to them. " This isn't over you rat. " She hissed. " You'll regret speaking me in that tone of voice soon enough, I guarantee. "

The other girl just raised her eyebrows.

As soon as they left, the other girl turned around. " Well, what an unpleasant bunch they turned out to be. Can't see how anyone can stand them if it weren't about the reputation. "

" Thanks for the backup there, I wasn't sure what to do there right then to be honest. " Claire said embarrassedly.

" Eh, no problem. But you need to learn to stick up for yourself, otherwise you're just going to get used harder than a toilet plumb after a severe case of diarrhea. " The other girl frowned.

" Uh.. Okay? " Claire said. Changing the subject quickly, she asked. " What's your name? "

" Im Vivian Perse. New to the institute and stuck in the gray division and pretty much screwing around so far. And you? "

" Ecarlate Burgundy, pleased to make your aquinta- "

" Too hard to remember, im just going to call you Claire. " Vivian interrupted. " You can call me Vive if you want. Much less formal and posh and all. "

She noticed the Rune pages on the table. " Oh shit, I completely forgotten about the 6 page Rune page we're supposed to finish in Runeology. " She looked desperately at Claire. " Spot me? "

Claire looked at her.

And with that, began their friendship as initiates in the Institute. Out of mutual dislike for the same person at first but hey, at least something good came out of it.

" Whenever you're ready, Miss Periwinkle. " Dr. Casters voice brought her back to the present.

Heather smiled primly and lifted up her hands.

Everyone hurriedly scooched back a few inches away from possible danger. A bright, hazy blue light began to glow between her palms. It started out as a spark, but grew in intensity with each passing seconds until it began to throb and crackle with power that positively hummed.

The ball kept pulsing and growing in intensity until it became something like a miniature sun. Claire had to squint to see.

Right when it appeared that it would explode, Heather thrusted out her palms and the ball shot from her hands and slammed onto the floor. The room exploded in a flash of light and they were all momentarily blinded. From where the ball landed, a crackling blue puma stood, lazily regarding them before joining Heather.

" Excellent display of control and power, Miss Periwinkle. " Dr. Caster approved. " Well done!" Heather gave another smug smile and stroked the pumas head. It purred like it was nothing more than a kitten.

A chalk flew up to the chalkboard and settled near Heather's name. From there, it began to tally up her results under the three categories. One could earn a total of five points in power, another five in control, and three points maximum in beauty and creativity as bonus points. Giving out a grand total of thirteen as a perfect score.

From the board, Dr. Caster awarded Heather with five in power, five in control, and two in creativity, giving her a total result of twelve points out of thirteen.

Almost a perfect score to boot. Claire thought enviously. Heather took her seat next to her friend Constance where they began to speak in low tones, smirking all the while and making gestures toward the rest of the class.

Probably talking about how the rest of us won't even be fit to spell the grime off their shoes. Claire thought grimly.

The rest of the class period passed by less dangerously. A silver year created a miniature blizzard that was at first charming, until it spiraled out of control and Dr. Caster had to spell a Fire Elemental to counter it. A Bronze year turned himself invisible, an impressive feat, but still namely boring and unoriginal and he sadly watched as he was awarded with a score of six.

A Gold year polymorphed herself into a griffin and strutted about regally, earning oohs and ahhs from her classmates and a nod from Dr. Caster after successfully reverting to herself without a feather showing. nine points.

Vive came next, head held high and arms crossed. Claire gave her a thumbs up and she raised her eyebrows humorously.

" Whenever you're ready Miss Perse. "

Vive flipped her hair and saluted her middle finger in the general direction of Heather.

From her finger erupted a magnificent white pegasus that swooped over the heads of the class toward Heather. Heather screamed and right at the last second, the stallion swooped up, narrowly avoiding clipping her forehead and landed regally next to Vive.

The class burst into applause and whistled, Claire clapping the hardest and Vive bowed deeply from left to right.

" While the posture was... questionable. " Doctor Caster frowned. " I must commend you on your ability to control and direct your power. Excellent work Miss Perse. " The board flashed ten points.

Vive smiled innocently and swaggered back to her seat.

" And now then... Miss Ecarlate Burgundy? "

The whole class swiveled to face her.

Oh Fudge. She thought.


End file.
